Tears of the Devil
by RiverFlowWanderers
Summary: When a battered tsolous is transported into Sanctuary, she doesn't know the language, she doesn't know the world. Can she find love and trust in an environment so different from everything she knows? Can the man she loves overcome his own past?
1. Chapter 1

_AN: We are two sisters who worship the Author Goddess and merely want to fill months until the next book comes out with a little imagination and fun with our favorite characters. No money has been made, from this and no disrespect intended._

_Tears of the Devil_

_By Riverflowwanderers_

_February 2__nd__ 9545 B.C._

_As the man wrapped his hand in her hair and dragged her from her room, the fleeting thought of 'I didn't do anything' floated through Kiara's head. It would be useless to think such things though so she merely relaxed her body and ignored the pain shooting down her back as the guard pulled her ruthlessly towards the punishment hall. Though people lined the halls, no one questioned her treatment and many sneered in amusement at Kiara's pain. When they reached the hall and the double doors slammed shut behind her, Kiara looked up into the eyes of her owner, Jasilikos. _

_"Take your proper position slave, or suffer more than your client's wrath."_

_She placed her legs beneath her and spread them. She clasped her hands behind her back and bowed her head._

_A portly man dressed in gold and blue came forward and smirked at her presence, "Thank you for bringing her so quickly Jasilikos," he said haughtily, "The humiliation I suffered at her hands must be punished! I have never been so disgraced by a common whore." _

_Kiara flinched at the man's voice. He was a frequent client and often gave her gifts for her services to him though he liked rough sex. She couldn't stand his attentions but last night, she had been too eager to please him and send him on his way. He lasted 10 minutes before she had him cumming into her mouth. He backhanded her so hard that she tasted blood but then left and she had thought that was the end of it. She was wrong. The customer scraped her cheek with the rings on his left hand, wrapped his meaty hand around her throat and dragged her to the middle of the room. Two guards came in carrying long whips and a set of chains as he dragged her to her feet. They placed the chains around her arms and legs tying them together behind her back before forcing her to her knees again. The whips were heated in a nearby fire until they were cherry red and Kiara braced herself for the first agonizing lash. Though she knew what was coming, she couldn't help screaming as the first whip fell across her back, slicing and burning her skin at the same time. _

_"You know that you are paying for her recovery time as well Lykos?" Jasilikos mentioned to the fat man smirking beside him. _

_Nodding in agreement, Lykos went back to watching Kiara scream and twist in the bonds as the whips methodically fell across her back and shoulders. Usually she was punished on her feet or on her head so no one could tell she was beaten but her client must have paid her recovery time to see her punished so severely. Not many people want to fuck an incapacitated whore._

'_Why can't he just leave me alone? I already told him no.'_

_Nikayla sighed as she looked around at the random destination in front of her. As a Katagari she was able to escape from her stalker in the flow of time and as a member of the Collter bear family, time travel was second nature. As she pictured a place and time in her head that she was sure Gerrik would never consider searching, the bright lights of New Orleans had flowed into a dimly lit temple-like building. The decorations were scarlet and gold with tapestries of the most obscene sexual acts Nikayla could imagine. No one was walking about but there were many doors lining the corridors and as Niki approached them, the sounds of flesh hitting flesh and moans of pain could be heard through the muffling stone. One door had not been closed all the way and the crack of a whip could be heard followed by a man grunting._

_"I so do not need to hear this," Niki muttered as she moved through the hallway as quickly as possible._

_ Niki shuddered as the sounds began to die out and moved toward the other end of the hallway as fast as she could. Pushing open the last door, she snuck in and found a room surrounded by pillars with an open space in the middle. Once the door had quietly closed behind her, Nikayla caught sight of the scene in the middle of the room. Two large guards were standing behind a kneeling woman with thick whips that rhythmically cut flesh from her back. Nikayla covered her mouth to hold in the gasp of horror. Sound was coming from the left of her and she looked over. Two men dressed in rich clothing were watching with gleeful amusement and one was rubbing his crotch as if the scene was turning him on. _

_"What a piece of flesh she is Jasilikos, I just can't get enough of watching her scream. If it weren't so expensive, I would have her whipped while I fucked her."_

_Once again, Niki had to cover her mouth to keep from making noise but her body and mind had other plans. She didn't think about the repercussions of her actions, or the witnesses she would leave behind. She was taken by a sense of justice inside her to protect the hurt woman. Dashing out from behind the pillar where she had been hiding, Nikayla threw herself on the gagged and beaten woman and transported them to the hall where Savitar judged the Katagaria. _

_June 23__rd__ 2009_

_As they appeared in the hall, a handsome man dressed in surfer shorts and no shirt appeared as well. By his wet hair and annoyed expression, Nikayla knew she had interrupted his surfing. _

_"You have one minute to give me one good reason why I shouldn't toast your ass right now."_

_"I don't have a reason, I have a someone," Nikayla said through her mounting fear and pointed to the young woman on the floor draped in gold chains and nothing else. Blood seeped from her wounds to drip on the marble floor. Savitar paled as he recognized the signs of a tsoulus._

_"What have you done bear?"_

_Nikayla growled and placed a protective hand on the woman's shoulder, "I rescued a victim of cruelty. If that condemns me to die then so be it."_

_Her hand dropped to her side and Niki prepared herself for death. He thought about his decision and perhaps he would have struck Niki down if the woman kneeling in her own blood had not realized that she was no longer gagged. A scream of absolute pain echoed through the room. Niki forgot about Savitar and his judgment to kneel next to the woman._

_"You are safe now," she whispered as her hand stroked the woman's head. The screaming didn't end until Savitar spoke in a soft voice, in a language that Niki couldn't understand. The woman melted into a quiet crying mess on the floor._

_"I should blast you apart for this Niki," Savitar said with a grimace, "but she is worth saving. Take her to Sanctuary and get her cleaned up."_

_"Couldn't you take care of her injuries?" Niki asked but Savitar merely smiled before disappearing from the room. _

_Niki sighed as she leaned down to pick up the weeping woman, "The least he could have done is got you some clothes. Hope there isn't too many guys there tonight."_

_Once the woman was tucked firmly in Niki's arms the bear transported them to Sanctuary._

_Sanctuary June 23__rd__, 2009_

_"I don't see what kind of competition we could possibly have from the modern inkblot. They are absolutely useless as opponents and only marginally fun to kill because of their incompetence. Wonder what Ash would say to training them up a bit before we killed them."_

_Valerius laughed at Kyrian's complaining. They were sitting at a table covered in gothic black lace with red candles and black roses waiting for their guests of honor to arrive. Since Tory couldn't be trusted not to tell Ash about his party, they had kept the real reason for the late night meeting a secret. Of course, now the guests of honor were late so everyone was sitting around talking shop about Daimon hunting and how lame it was getting. A movement from the front caught everyone's attention and 'Surprise' was on everyone's lips when Tabitha groaned._

_"It's just Styxx guys!"_

_Valerius laughed, "Babe, you know that this is his birthday as well right?"_

_Styxx snorted and held up his hands in surrender, "I am here for Acheron, not to have my very unimportant existence celebrated. Do not rope me into anything else."_

_Kyrian pushed out a chair with his foot and Styxx to the offered seat with relief. Not even a minute passed before someone hissed, "Here they come!"_

_Three people walked through the door of Sanctuary to be greeted with shouts of 'Surprise' and 'Happy Birthday!'_

_Ash stared in astonishment at the small crowd of people clapping and shouting for him as Tory and Simi began cheering with the crowd. In a show of disbelief, Ash looked behind him confusion and then around him, searching for the recipient of all this love. _

_"Oh stop it sweetie," Tory said from his side, "they are all here for you."_

_Tabitha whooped and then laughed, "Let the party begin!"_

_Styxx smiled to see his brother laughing and teasing the people around him. Seeing his twin relaxed and enjoying the celebration of his birth sent a wave of guilt through him and the tall blonde shook his head to keep the memories of past birthdays from surfacing. Today was about Acheron and he wasn't going to ruin it with thoughts of the past. It was enough to be here to see his brother's joy._

_When Tabitha called for presents, Zarek smirked and waved a table in the back closer. On it was a pile of presents wrapped in Viva Piñata wrapping paper. Ash laughed and went to take his place beside the table. He began unwrapping the gifts to find gothic clothing, new Priest manga and a T-Shirt that said 'Older than Dirt' on it. Everyone looked at Wulf and groaned as the Viking tried to hide his smirk. Ash was getting to the bottom when he caught a glimpse of a small box sitting off to the side. The outside was decorated with gold and silver painted shells and it seemed ready to collapse at any moment from age. Ash picked it up tenderly and looked around the room for the only person who could have had Ryssa's jewelry box. When Ash's eyes landed on him, Styxx motioned for him to open it. Inside was a collection of delicate necklaces and in the false bottom was a small cloth doll looking out with blue marble eyes._

_"Ryssa's doll," Ash gasped._

_Tears came to Tory's eyes as she realized what a treasure this would be to Ash and the hostility she had always felt towards Styxx seemed to lessen. Ash seemed close to tears as well but he wouldn't allow them to fall. Walking up to Styxx, Ash pulled his brother to his feet and threw his arms around his blue eyed twin._

_"Thank you Styxx," the Atlantean god whispered._

_"Why did I spend my money on all new biker gear if dolls and jewelry are all it takes to make T-Rex happy?" Talon complained before Sunshine elbowed him in the side, Tabitha slapped his arm and Katra smacked the back of his head._

_"Ow," Talon said holding his hands up in surrender, "I give!"_

_Styxx and Ash threw the Celt identical glares before Styxx backed away and smiled at his brother._

_"Go enjoy the rest of your party," the Greek prince said, "I will guard Peku."_

_Ash nodded and set the small box next to Styxx before walking back to where Tory sat with tears in her eyes and a smile on her lips, smacking Talon on the head as he went by._

_Tabitha brought out the red and black cake shaped like demon as Ash set aside the last present, an original Sunshine painting of Simi lying out in the sun playing with a diamond necklace._

_Simi squealed and headed for the cake when Tabitha stood in the way, "Wait Simi, Ash is supposed to have the first slice. He is the birthday…well not... boy but-"_

_Tory rescued the fumbling warrior woman, "It's tradition Simi."_

_Ash shook his head, "It's okay, I don't really eat cake. Give the first slice to Styxx if you want to satisfy tradition."_

_"You were born first though Acheron," Styxx said, "You really must take the first slice."_

_Ash glared at his brother but said nothing as Tabitha set a piece of the cake in front of him. As soon as Tabitha turned around, he slid the cake over to Simi who immediately gobbled it up. Everyone laughed and Tabitha glared at Ash in mock anger before serving everyone else. Just as she was handing a slice to Valerius, a flash of light at the bar indicated that a were-hunter had teleported in. Everyone turned to see a tall woman with her arms around a thin bloodied girl decked out in gold chains, wrist cuffs and nothing else. _

_"Someone help her please," the Katagari uttered in a breathless voice. _

_Ash and Styxx reacted at the same time, both swinging their jackets off to cover the woman. Styxx's tan duster fell across her shoulders as he swung the small woman into his arms and began carrying her to the back. Aimee was there to open the doors and she led them into the infirmary with Ash, Tory and Katra following behind. _

_"Who are you?" Dev asked the exhausted Katagari as Colt and the quadruplets came into the Sanctuary main room. Niki sat down in one of the abandoned chairs before answering the question._

_"I am Nikayla, bear swan of the Collter clan. I was time traveling to escape an unwanted suitor and found myself in a beautiful palace on an unfamiliar island. I found her there in one of the many rooms being beaten with heated whips. It was a whore house for sure but…the things they did there," Niki shuddered as some of the sounds she had heard in that hallway came back to her, "I can't imagine what she has been through. Savitar told me to take her here."_

_Dev looked at his siblings in disbelief that the female bear wasn't dead for breaking the rules of time travel. If Savitar had spared her however, he wasn't going to condemn the bear swan._

_"Come with me," Dev said, "we have a bed where you can rest." _

_As the two bears left Simi turned to Tabitha, "Can I have more cake now?"_

_Tabitha nodded, not really in a party mood. The whole room seemed to be in shock while Simi ate most of the cake with her ever present bottle of barbeque sauce. _

_"Lay her down here," Aimee told Styxx, pointing to an operating table as Carson appeared from his room and began washing his hands. Ash stayed in the background trying to keep his flashback at bay. Carson threaded a needle and thanked the gods that she was still asleep. He stuck his needle through the first section Aimee had cleaned off when the woman suddenly woke up and screamed at the pain, showing a row of small silver balls piercing her tongue. She began chanting and four people in the room started at the ancient language she used. Styxx stilled as fluid Atlantean flowed from the woman's lips._

_"Please, let me die, please, let me die, please, I am sorry!"_

_Ash knelt beside her and made a quick gesture with his hand. Her eyes opened at his command and dark violet eyes filled with pain met his silver ones. _

_"You are safe," Ash whispered in her native language._

_The woman moaned and shook her head, "I am never safe, you lie."_

_Sytxx stroked her arm and Katra joined her dad. Tory looked at Carson and motioned him closer._

_"I think you need to get her some anesthesia. She shouldn't be awake for this," Tory whispered into the older man's ear._

_He nodded and slipped out the back to grab the human first aid kit he kept. Katra was talking to the woman and trying to get her name. As Carson came back in the room the woman finally turned to Styxx._

_"Kiara, my name is Kiara," she whispered through her teeth and then a needle pierced her arm and she slipped into the drug induced sleep. _

_Carson moved quickly once he knew she was knocked out and her back was stitched up and wrapped in bandages as fast as he could manage._

_He placed a blanket over her and turned to Ash and Styxx, "One of you needs to move her into a bedroom. She is going to be scared when she wakes up and this room tends to freak people out more."_

_Styxx moved forward and gently took her into his arms before Ash even moved. Securing her in his arms, the blond haired twin looked towards Aimee to lead him to a room. Once again the thin bear led the way to an empty bedroom close to where Dev had placed Niki. She opened the door and Sytxx placed Kiara on the soft bed. _

_"Is there a room I can stay in?" Styxx asked, "I don't want to leave her without someone who knows her language when she wakes up."_

_Ash looked at his brother in confusion, "What are you doing Styxx?"_

_Styxx looked up, "She needs help Acheron, I have a need to help someone. It is as simple as that. She…she reminds…" _

_He didn't finish his sentence but his meaning was clear and Ash sighed in understanding. Taking Tory's hand, the tall god left the room with his daughter and wife in tow. Styxx smiled at Aimee who was waiting for him by the door._

_"Come on tall one," Aimee said, "let's hope the bed is long enough."_

_Kiara woke up to the sound of silence echoing in her head. Pain shot through her back as she moved and she bit her lip to keep from making noise. Looking around the room she saw that she was all alone in a large comfortable bedroom. There were rugs on the floor, a nightstand and table with magazines scattered on them and a black box sitting in the corner. She began shaking as she hated being left alone for any length of time. Alone time was never a good thing, because that meant she wasn't making money for Jasilikos and he would be angry with her. Getting up from the bed, she stood on shaky legs and made her way to the door. The hallway was lined with similar doors and she opened the first door she came to. It opened silently and Kiara walked very carefully towards the occupied bed as the door slid shut behind her. Crawling onto the bed, she hissed as one slash caught in the sheets but when the person beside her didn't stir she snuggled into the blankets and finally went back to sleep._


	2. Chapter 2

Tears of the Devil

Chapter Two:

Kiara awoke in a strange bed wrapped in blankets lying next to a very naked man. She wasn't too surprised, after all, she was used to waking up in strange places with strange men and sometimes women. A tear slid down her cheek and she quickly brushed it away. She knew everything had been dream, a way for her to escape the pain inflicted on her. She shifted her body on the bed and immediately knew that was a mistake. The man stretched his impossibly long body and looked over at her, he blinked rapidly, wiped his eyes, and looked at her again. He gave a startled yelp and leapt out of the bed and was at the farthest wall, all decency of no clothing thrown out of the window. His action made Kiara flinch and move farther away all the while trying to explain to him that she hadn't meant to wake him up, in a very high pitched voice. She was speaking in a language he hadn't heard spoken in centuries. He just stood against the wall watching the distressed woman in front of him, not knowing how to handle the situation. He was about to walk towards her when the door to his room flew open and in walked a tall man with a murderous glint in his eyes. He took one look at the scene before a scowl covered his face and he raised his hand. In the next moment the naked man was slammed against the wall and held there even though not a single hand had touched him.

"Speak now!" Ash growled, not trusting any more words to come without cursing his brother into oblivion.

Styxx's look of absolute terror, mixed with a touch of surprise, was the only element keeping him alive but Ash couldn't help the feeling of burning anger and betrayal inside his chest.

"I have not touched her brother," Styxx said as calmly as he could. Darting his eyes around the room, he saw Kiara crumpled on the floor against the wall, eyes wide with fear as tears coursed down her cheeks. Ash looked as well and her look of distress did not help Styxx's situation.

"Please Acheron," Styxx begged before Ash could open his mouth, "I would never again force a woman. Never again, she is scared of your anger. Please ask her, I do not know why she was in my bed."

Ash tried hard to ignore the logic Styxx was supplying

but his sense of judgment won out and he lowered his

brother to the floor, clothing him in the process. Turning

to Kiara he knelt down and saw the truth of his brother's

words as she inched away from him and began sobbing.

"I will not hurt you," Ash said in a voice made for soothing any woman.

"And here I thought you only used that tone with me in the bedroom," said Soteria as she walked into the room winking in Kiara's direction. The small woman began looking confused. Soteria surveyed the situation around her and sprang into immediate action.

"Ash! You know better then to show your anger in front of someone who doesn't deserve it. I am positively ashamed of your attitude mister," said Tory in a chiding voice. She smiled quite evilly and pointed to both of the brothers, "Habitat for Humanity called and said they need two strong abled bodies and I just volunteered you and Styxx. You should be getting down there instead of frightening this woman and slamming your brother around. Take your anger out on the wood and start thinking of how to make this better."

"I meant now!" she said pointing her finger towards the exit after realizing he wasn't moving. He bowed his head and touched Kiara's forehead before he shoved Styxx out the door and quickly followed with a well placed glare from Tory.

"Are you alright?" asked Tory receiving a puzzled look from Kiara. "Sorry I forgot you don't understand English," she replied switching to the Atlantean language she had heard the young woman use the night before.

"No, sorry, I was confused; I could understand you and I don't know how that is possible. You were all speaking a language so foreign to me and I never learned it, I just know it."

"I guess Ash helped you out in that department, at least he's good for two things in this world." She replied with a smile on her face hoping to break down the barriers this girl so obviously had up.

Kiara just nodded silently, while her mind screamed for answers to the thousands of questions going off in her mind.

"You must be really confused with everything else that has happened since last night." Kiara gave her a slight nod and Tory continued, "Well I have a class to teach in half an hour and need to leave, but I will go fetch someone who could probably answer your questions better then me anyway. Oh and before I forget, Ash asked me to bring some of my things until we could get you your own, so I hope they fit." She handed the woman her clothes and began to head to the door when she remembered something else. "I never did ask you for your name, mine is Soteria, but most people call me Tory."

"Kiara," came the soft reply.

"It's nice to meet you Kiara." With that Tory left the room and went down to the bar in search of someone.

She saw the patron she was sure could help and went to sit down in front of her.

"You saved her life you know?" said Tory watching the woman in front of her play with her bottle of beer. "Isn't it a bit early for that?" She asked pointing to the bottle in question.

"I didn't know what to do. You should have seen the horror and the monstrosity that was going on. I didn't know what else to do," she repeated in vain.

"You're right, I don't know what happened, what I do know is that there is a frightened young lady up there who could use some comfort, and you would be the most understandable right now."

"What would I say to her?"

"Just be nice, maybe she doesn't want to talk, but I do know she doesn't want to be left alone. If she asks a question, answer it the best you can. Just be her friend, that is something she needs right now."

Nikayla nodded in understanding and watched as Tory stood up and left the bar. After Tory left, Nikayla reluctantly got out of her seat and started wandering towards the stairs.

"Good luck Nikayla," said one of the quadruplets, she couldn't remember which one. She gave him a grateful nod and went upstairs, it was now or never, she thought to herself.

Kiara was just finishing putting on the strange material left for her when there was a soft knock on her door. She froze in her spot and looked around the room to try and find a hiding place. No such luck, the door began to open before she could hide.

"Hello?" said a shy female voice followed by a small body stepping into the room.

Kiara immediately shrank to the back of the room even though she recognized the woman as her savior.

Nikayla saw Kiara shrink away from her and she immediately began to frown. How was she going to help this woman? Thought Nikayla as she sat in the closest chair available to her and just looked at the floor.

Kiara watched the woman sitting and almost couldn't bear the silence when the woman began to speak.

"Hi… I mean, hello, my name is Nikayla," she started.

"Kiara," came the soft reply.

"It's nice to, um… meet you Kiara." Said Nikayla in a soft whisper. "You can call me Nicki by the way, most everybody does."

"Ok… Nicki." Kiara seemed to be pondering a question and Nicki waited patiently for the young woman to speak.

Finally, Kiara looked over at the bear swan and asked, "What are you?"

An instant blush spread over her face as she realized how rude the question was but Nicki laughed and leaned forward in her chair.

"Don't worry, I am used to blunt questions. I don't like to beat around the bush when we just get to the same place anyway. I am a bear who can take human form."

Kiara looked even more puzzled and Nicki tried to explain as best she could.

"I was born as a bear because of some science thing my forefather did to my ancestors, so even though I have an animal heart I can take the form of a human. In fact the whole downstairs, I mean, the owners of this bar are bears too."

Kiara nodded and hugged her knees to her chest, "do you like being a bear?"

Nicki blinked at the question, "That's tough to answer, I mean, it is all I have known. It is hard to not like that which you are used to after all. I mean I grew up in a close knit family which is not something a lot of people can say. I am sorry, I didn't mean to imply…" she stuttered to a halt.

Kiara was staring intently at her, waiting for the rest of the story when she realized why the bear woman had stopped. She looked at her feet and shrugged, "It's alright, I don't remember much before becoming a… My mother died when I was very young and my father became a drunk because of her death. I guess supporting me and his drinking was too much. He sold me the first chance he got."

"Wow, my father would hurt any male who came near me. In fact all of my brothers were pretty protective me, it was sweet but it still never got me any playing time. Not that I was looking for anything but well, it would have been nice." She said with a faint smile.

"Trust me when I say men are not all they are cracked up to be," she replied with a grimace before looking at the woman sitting down. Without thinking Kiara went and sat down in the seat across from Nicki to continue their chatting.

"Yea, I know some males are pigs, in fact it was because of a man that I happened upon you."

Kiara looked up at this letting Nicki know it was ok for her to continue.

"It was my cousin, he has this weird infatuation with me and kind of stalks me. The only way to get rid of him is to jump through times, sure he could trace my scent but he is a little slow so he won't find me for a few weeks at least." Nicki looked at Kiara with humor in her eyes and Kiara looked back at her trying to hide a smile.

"I knew a few guys like that; they were, um, regulars at _**The Tsulous Temple**_," she said bitterly then went on, "we could all use a few less of them."

"If you don't mind my asking, um… what's a tsulous temple?"

"Only what I have known ever since my father sold me, it is a place to procure sex slaves."

Nicki nodded mutely, not really knowing what to say to the honest woman across from her. Frankly she had never really had any close female friend, it had always only ever been her family. For some reason she just wanted to tell this remarkable woman in front of her all about her life as bear and she found that she wanted to know about her life living in Atlantis. Nicki got her wish, the two women sat together the rest of the day, forgetting there was a whole other world out there. They learned a lot about one another and in the end were laughing and joking together as if they had been friends for years rather then less then a day.


End file.
